Gareth Bale’s move to Manchester United was sanctioned by Real Madrid

Recent reports from Spanish news outlet Don Balon claim that a move for Gareth Bale to join Manchester United had been sanctioned by Real Madrid president Floretino Perez on deadline day of the transfer window for a fee of around £90 million.

Bale had been linked with a move to Manchester United all summer long, with manager Jose Mourinho even publicly admitting his interest to sign the Welsh wizard during the Red Devils’ European Super Cup clash against Real Madrid before the start of the Premier League campaign last month.

Any interest from United was immediately rebuffed by Real Madrid at the time and there was no further interaction between the two clubs regarding a potential transfer of Bale to Old Trafford.

However according to Don Balon, a transfer for Bale on the deadline day was actually sanctioned by Real Madrid manager Zinedine Zidane after United had a bid of around £90 million accepted but the Welshman was not keen on a switch to Manchester and as a result, the move did not go through.

The source that reported this transfer is not the most reliable though and many have expressed reservations on this bit of news. The skepticism is understandable; especially as manager Jose Mourinho admitted earlier this week that there would be no deadline day incomings for Manchester United.

Bale was recently booed by the Santiago Bernabeu crowd in Real’s recent 2-2 draw with Valencia and has constantly been the center of Real Madrid fans’ ire following his then world record breaking move from Tottenham back in 2013.

Despite helping Real Madrid win three UEFA Champions League titles during his time with the club, the Welsh international has been plagued by injuries regularly since his move and some of his inconsistent performances have been roundly criticized.